PTI has made yet another remarkable U-turn with little warning. After months of complaining that National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf was acting unfairly by refusing to ratify the 123 resignations submitted by PTI MNAs in April, and then questioning the government about why only 11 were accepted and others were not, the party is now demanding that the accepted resignations be de-notified immediately.
Mr. Ashraf had declared in April that he would not accept any resignation unless each MP was summoned individually and asked to validate their choice. However, the called MNAs did not appear, and the speaker subsequently finalised a handful of resignations for notice.
In what appears to be an attempt to exploit the NA speaker’s rationale, the PTI has now contested the judgement on the same grounds: how can they be regarded acceptable if the law demands getting the agreement of each MP, which was never given?
The shift in strategy comes just days before by-elections on the vacant seats were scheduled.
The Islamabad High Court, which is considering the petition, has given the party five days to prove its commitment to returning to parliament. The frustration is palpable. The top justice of the IHC questioned the party on why lawmakers whose resignations were not accepted did not return to parliament. “To remain outside the National Assembly while being a member is a betrayal of its mandate,” Justice Athar Minallah said during Thursday’s sessions.
One cannot possibly disagree. Since losing power, the PTI legislators have remained oblivious to their obligation to represent their constituents in the National Assembly. Nothing ever stopped them from organising a public campaign to oppose the PDM government and its policies while still in parliament. They granted the administration a pass on several key pieces of legislation before attempting to have the courts intervene in legislative matters.
Whatever the party’s future holds, the truth remains that any authority or legitimacy it requires to rule will always pass through parliament. It should not pursue its powers and privileges if it is unable to sit down and follow the house rules.
The PTI’s move to retract their resignations could signal a new twist in the Islamabad power struggle. It is also worth noting that, according to a recent report, the government has yet to allocate funding to the ECP for the impending October 16 by-elections. What’s going on?
The noise created by the audio leaks last week seems to have dissipated almost completely, while Imran Khan continues to remain tight-lipped on a date for his next march on Islamabad. November draws nearer with the army chief insistent about departing on time and urging that the national focus remain on the economy. It is difficult to avoid conjecture with so much at stake.
